HOSTS
Los Angeles City Councilmember Marqueece Harris-Dawson proudly represents the 8th Council District of the City of Los Angeles and chairs its Planning Land Use and Management Committee. The Councilmember has introduced policies that combat homelessness, create quality jobs, clean streets, and encourage community policing. Within his first 18 months as a Councilmember, he authored Proposition HHH, a $1.2 billion bond for permanent supportive housing, the largest investment towards ending homelessness in the nation. and has authorized more affordable housing in Council District 8 than anywhere in the city in his first two years in office.
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The 8th District is home to over 248,000 people which includes the highest concentration of African Americans in the city. Councilmember Harris-Dawson understands how decades of systematic disinvestment have harmed South LA communities and believes the people are its greatest resource.
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Councilmember Harris-Dawson is a graduate of Morehouse College. He joined Community Coalition, one of the most progressive non-profits in the country, in 1995. Beginning in 2004, Harris-Dawson succeeded US Congresswoman Karen Bass as President and CEO of the organization.
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The Councilmember is the recipient of various awards such as the coveted Do Something “BRICK” Award, The Wellness Foundation Sabbatical Award, the NAACP Man of Valor Award, Durfee Foundation’s Stanton Fellowship, and Liberty Hill Foundation’s Upton Sinclair Award. He also served as a board member for the Liberty Hill Foundation. He holds a certificate in Nonprofit Management from Stanford’s Graduate School of Business and is an Aspen Institute Pahara Fellow.
Marqueece grew up in South Los Angeles and proudly resides there with his wife Karrie. They strongly believe in the community’s power to create a better tomorrow through organizing and working together.
WHAT ARE NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCILS?
The 99 Neighborhood Councils together form the grassroots level of Los Angeles City government. The system was created to connect LA’s diverse communities to City Hall, and was established in 1999 by an amendment to the City Charter. While Neighborhood Council board members are volunteers, they are public officials elected to office by the members of their community.
Neighborhood Councils advocate on issues like homelessness, housing, land use, emergency preparedness, public safety, parks, transportation, and sustainability. They also provide local expertise and a local voice on the delivery of City services to their communities.
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Each Council holds monthly meetings of their full board, in addition to monthly Committee meetings with a more targeted focus on key issues or projects, like public safety, transportation, homelessness, or land use. All meetings are open to the public.